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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Corvallis, Oregon » Horticultural Crops Disease and Pest Management Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #383393
Research Project: Sustainable Management of Arthropod Pests in Horticultural Crops

Location: Horticultural Crops Disease and Pest Management Research Unit

Title: Erythritol combined with non-nutritive sucralose increases feeding by Drosophila suzukii, quickens mortality and reduces oviposition

Author
item PRICE, BRIANA - Oregon State University
item Lee, Jana
item Choi, Man-Yeon

Submitted to: Crop Protection
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/26/2021
Publication Date: 8/28/2021
Citation: Price, B.E., Lee, J.C., Choi, M.Y. 2021. Erythritol combined with non-nutritive sucralose increases feeding by Drosophila suzukii, quickens mortality and reduces oviposition. Crop Protection. 150. Article 105812. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2021.105812.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2021.105812

Interpretive Summary: The insect pest, spotted-wing drosophila (SWD), Drosophila suzukii, can potentially cause $718 million in crop losses in small fruits and cherries each year. Current chemical control measures have negative impacts on the environment, and alternative controls are often costly or labor-intensive. We discovered that a mixture of two non-sugar sweeteners can increase SWD death, lowers the reproduction of females before they die, and has a less sticky formulation for sprays. This formulation is non-toxic to humans, the ingredients are readily available, and is easier for growers to adopt than other labor-intensive measures. Next, we are investigating whether this safe and conveniently applied formulation is useful in field applications.

Technical Abstract: Drosophila suzukii, spotted-wing drosophila (SWD), is a pest of small fruits often managed by chemical insecticides, and finding a convenient non-toxic alternative is a challenge. Erythritol, a non-caloric sugar, is safe for humans and toxic to D. suzukii by causing a hyperosmotic imbalance. Combining erythritol with sucrose as a phagostimulant can enhance fly mortality. However, sucrose is sticky when applied on plants, and provides flies with nutritional carbohydrate if a non-lethal dose is ingested. Therefore, our objectives were to find a sucrose alternative, a non-caloric sugar that also has phagostimulative properties. We found that: 1) sucralose is phagostimulative to D. suzukii, 2) 0.1M sucralose was fed on readily by D. suzukii and enhanced feeding on erythritol when in a 1.5M erythritol: 0.1M sucralose (E:Sul) formulation, 3) erythritol and sucralose coated berries deter oviposition, and 4) erythritol:sucralose formulation induces fast mortality. Given the potential of E:Sul, additional studies on the effect of sucralose on sugar osmoregulation, metabolism, and field efficacy are underway to provide growers an efficacious control tool.